It’s Paul McCartney New Vinyl Thursday at The Vinyl Underground at 7th Heaven. Check out this week’s list of new vinyl arrivals:
Alanis Morissette – Such Pretty Forks In The Road
Art Feynman – Half Price At 3:30 (Red Color Vinyl)
Amy Winehouse – Back to Black
Black Sabbath – Master of Reality
Blues Pills – Lady In Gold: Live In Paris
Bobbie Gentry – The Delta Sweete (Deluxe Edition
Beach Boys – Pet Sounds (180 Gram Vinyl, Mono Sound)
Bob Marley – Legend (180 Gram Vinyl, Special Edition, Reissue
Courtney Marie Andrews – Old Flowers
Weekly Review:
Phoenix-born singer/songwriter Courtney Marie Andrews bares her crushed soul on Old Flowers. Song cycles about heartbreak are nothing new, but Andrews makes her worthwhile addition to this vast cannon with a hushed production that rewards close – and repeated – listens and an eye for detail, like dancing in Nashville and walking on Venice Beach under a full moon.
Old Flowers opens with “Burlap String,” which sounds like an outtake from Neil Young’s Harvest and sets the scene of “a family and a house/where the memories of us belong.” The enchanting “If I Told” is a beautiful tale of longing that captures the spark of a new relationship. The ache behind the delicate melody is teased out by what sounds like the ghosts of piano keys in the background that ultimately swells into an organ that consumes the track.
These wistful memories give way to the devastation of “Carnival Dream” and a cascading drum part that reinforces the hurt. By the time we get to “Ships in the Night,” Andrews can admit to her onetime love “I know you felt the same way/but the timing wasn’t right.”
Andrews captures her pain so elegantly and perfectly on Old Flowers it is nearly impossible not to be moved. Its orbit is so powerful that it can draw in unprepared listeners. Played in the right time and space, it is a jewel. -Joel Francis
Childish Gambino – Awaken My Love
Cure – The Greatest Hits
The Chicks – Gaslighter
Def Leppard – Hysteria (180 Gram Vinyl)
Dr. John – Gris Gris (180 Gram Vinyl)
The Dirty Streets – Rough And Tumble
Dâm-Funk – Adolescent Funk
Dâm-Funk – Toeachizown, Vol. 1: LA Trik
Don Bryant – You Make Me Feel
Weekly Review:
You might not know who Don Bryant is but you probably know his work. Bryant released a solo album back in 1969 called Precious Soul only to take off as one of top staff writers for Hi Records (home of Al Green and Otis Clay). He is credited with writing as many as 154 songs. He is also married to Ann Peebles, who he co-wrote the classic “I Can’t Stand the Rain,” which would later be sampled by Missy Elliott on her hip hop hit “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly).” You might think he got his shot at performing but it just didn’t work out. Luckily for us, we were wrong.
In 2017, 48 years after releasing his first (and only) solo album, Bryant got back into the studio to record Don’t Give Up on Love. As a follow up this year, he released You Make Me Feel. What we get on You Make Me Feel is a legendary songwriter with a killer voice being backed by members of the famous Hi Rhythm section, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, The Bo-Keys, and many more blasting out soulful tunes about love, loss and heartache. This album is full of a who’s who of legendary soul talent.
I will admit, I was aware of his work, but not him in particular. I purchased this record because it was being played overhead at the Vinyl Underground and it caught my attention right away. This album is the real deal, and a must have for anyone that loves Memphis soul music. -Brad Simmons
Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP (180 Gram Vinyl)
Funkadelic – Maggot Brain
Funkadelic – Cosmic Slop
Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
Fall Out Boy – Believers Never Die
The Garden – Life & Times Of A Paperclip
The Garden – Haha (Digital Download Card)
The Garden – Mirror Might Steal Your Charm
The Garden – U Want The Scoop?
Genghis Tron – Dead Mountain Mouth (Remastered)
Genghis Tron – Board Up The House
Glass Animals – How To Be A Human Being
Iggy Pop – Lust For Life
Iggy Pop – The Idiot
Iration – Hotting Up
Irma Thomas – After The Rain (180 Gram Vinyl, Gatefold LP Jacket, Remix, Remastered)
John Prine – Tree Of Forgiveness
Jimi Hendrix – Axis: Bold As Love (180 Gram Vinyl)
Jimi Hendrix – Smash Hits
Jimi Hendrix – Band Of Gypsys 50th Anniversary Edition
Kansas – The Absence Of Presence
Weekly Review:
The 16th album by wayward (and native) sons Kansas manages to capture the essence of what made the radio-friendly prog-rock band popular in the 1970s, while infusing it with enough new blood to ensure the group will carry on well into the 21st century.
All of the music on The Absence of Presence is written by newcomers Zak Rizvi and Tom Brislin. The pair handles the lion’s share of the lyrics as well, although founding member Phil Ehart co-wrote the words on four songs.
Absence also marks lead vocalist Ronnie Platt’s second outing with the band. He doesn’t sound like longtime frontman Steve Walsh, but his voice is familiar enough to slide into the void left by Walsh’s absence.
The result is what you would expect. Lots of violin/keyboard duets, powerful drums and big, chugging guitars that turn on a dime. The best moments on The Absence of Presence come during the many instrumental sections when the seven musicians are able to play off each other. Close your eyes during “Propulsion 1” or the instrumental breakdowns during “Animals on the Roof” and “The Song the River Sang” and it’s hard not to slip back in time. -Joel Francis
Kanye West – College Dropout
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin 2 (180 Gram Vinyl, Remastered)
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (180 Gram Vinyl, Remastered)
Lumineers – Lumineers
L-Seven – L-seven
Lucinda Williams – Car Wheels on a Gravel Road
Man – Revelation (Limited Edition, Purple Colored Vinyl)
My Chemical Romance – Black Parade (Picture Disc Vinyl)
Mac Miller – Circles (Clear Vinyl, Poster)
Mac Miller – Watching Movies With The Sounds Off (Gatefold LP Jacket, Limited Edition)
Mark Lanegan – Straight Songs Of Sorrow (Clear Vinyl)
Massive Attack – Mezzanine (180 Gram Vinyl)
Metallica – Metallica
Monophonics – It’s Only Us
Orgone – Reasons
OutKast – Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik
Ozzy Osbourne – Blizzard Of Ozz (180 Gram Vinyl, Remastered)
Ozzy Osbourne – Diary Of A Madman (Picture Disc Vinyl LP, Remastered)
Ozzy Osbourne – Ordinary Man
Otis Redding – Lonely and Blue: The Deepest Soul Of Otis Redding
Paul McCartney – Flaming Pie (180 Gram Vinyl, Remastered)
Prince – Prince
The Psychedelic Furs – Made Of Rain (Limited Edition, Purple Colored Vinyl, Indie Exclusive)
Prophets of Rage – Prophets Of Rage (180 Gram Vinyl)
Prophets of Rage – The Party’s Over (Limited Edition, Indie Exclusive)
PJ Harvey – Dry – Demos
Weekly Review:
The demos Polly Jean Harvey crafted for what would become her debut album are so strong they were released as bonus tracks not long after Dry started drawing critical acclaim. Now they are finally receiving their own stand-alone vinyl release.
The demos are presented in the same running order as the proper album, and clock in at nearly the same combined length, providing an alternate perspective of the lauded release. Many of the songs are built around acoustic guitar parts that create more space for Harvey’s voice and lyrics to shine through.
Harvey aficionados have long had Dry – Demos in one form or another for some time. If you are still actively listening to Dry or wondering what the hype surrounding Harvey is about, you will eventually want to add them to your vinyl collection as well. -Joel Francis
Pink Floyd – Meddle (Gatefold LP Jacket, 180 Gram Vinyl)
Pink Floyd – The Dark Side Of The Moon (180 Gram Vinyl)
Pink Floyd – The Wall (180 Gram Vinyl, Gatefold LP Jacket)
Pink Floyd – The Final Cut (180 Gram Vinyl, Gatefold LP Jacket)
Pink Floyd – The Best Of Pink Floyd: A Foot In The Door (Gatefold LP Jacket, 180 Gram Vinyl)
Panic! At the Disco – A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out
Panic! At the Disco – Too Weird to Live Too Rare to Die
Post Malone – Hollywood’s Bleeding (Colored Vinyl, Pink)
Queen – Greatest Hits I
Roddy Ricch – Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial
Weekly Review:
Trap MC Roddy RIcch’s debut album made a lot of noise earlier this year when his single “The Box” spent 11 weeks at the top of the charts and became a dance club staple. Ricch allegedly spent just 15 minutes recording the juggernaut and claimed to recording 250 songs for Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial.
This quick pace is evident in the 16 tracks that made the album – and clock in at a little more than 43 minutes. Ricch almost sings his lyrics (with an assist from Auto-Tune), creating a smooth delivery and melody that serves as a counterpoint to the hardened machismo of Ricch’s lyrics. Most songs revolve around tales about Ricch’s previous life as drug dealer, his success – and wealth – as a rapper and bragging about sexual exploits. Along the way, Ricch gets high-profile assists from Mustard, Ty Dolla Sign, Meek Mill and A Boogie wit da Hoodie.
While the lyrical content remains fairly static, the production is frequently fascinating. Delicate finger-picked guitars give way to gospel piano, flutes, harps and vaguely Asian melodies. These disparate arrangements are held together with booming basslines and trap drums. The back half of the album is especially interesting, with each song sounding completely different than the rest. This sequence culminates with “Prayers to the Trap God” and a gospel choir on the concluding “War Baby.” -Joel Francis
Rage Against The Machine – Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine – Evil Empire (180 Gram Vinyl)
Rage Against the Machine – The Battle Of Los Angeles (180 Gram Vinyl)
Rose City Band – Summerlong
The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed
Rolling Stones – Between The Buttons (Limited Edition, Turquoise)
The Stooges – Funhouse (50th Anniversary, Limited Edition, Deluxe Edition, Indie Exclusive)
Scorpions – Savage Amusement: 50th Anniversary
Sevdaliza – Ison (180 Gram Vinyl, Limited Edition, Gatefold LP Jacket, Black)
Soft Palms – Soft Palms (Colored Vinyl, Yellow, Digital Download Card)
Steve Vai – Passion & Warfare (Limited Flaming Yellow & Orange Marble Colored Vinyl)
Sun Ra – Celestial Love (Orange Colored Vinyl)
That Dog – Retreat From The Sun (180 Gram Vinyl, Black)
Thin Lizzy – Thin Lizzy
Tin Machine – Tin Machine II (Limited Numbered, Silver Vinyl, 180-Gram)
Tom Misch – Beat Tape 1
Tyler The Creator – Goblin
Van Halen – 1984
Various Artists – If You’re Not Part of the Solution, You’re Part of the Problem (Soul, Politics and Spirituality in Jazz, 1967-1975)
From “Strange Fruit” in the 1930s, to Duke Ellington’s “Black, Brown and Beige” suite in the ‘40s, to Sonny Rollins’ Freedom Now album in the 1950s, protest music has long been at the heart and core of jazz. This collection rounds up 10 performances from a time when America’s civil rights leaders were being killed and more militant factions such as the Black Panthers were gaining a voice. As a genre, jazz was also under siege from R&B groups like Sly and the Family Stone and James Brown.
The music in this double LP is just as strident and uncompromising as one would expect from the title, but it’s far from a purely academic exercise. More often than not, the basslines in these performances are funky enough on their own to get your feet involved, while your head ponders the parallels between that time and the present day, and the horn players ricochet melodies and grooves off each other. Dig it. -Joel Francis
Various Artists – Many Faces Of Pink Floyd (Gatefold LP Jacket, Limited Edition, White 180 Gram Vinyl)
Wu-Tang Clan – The Essential Wu-tang Clan
Wye Oak – No Horizon (Extended Play, Pink)
Zombies – Greatest Hits
Zombies – I Love You
Zombies – Odessey & Oracle
FLASH SALE!
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Enjoy the music and we will see you soon. Your loving Vinyl Underground at 7th Heaven staff:
Sherman, Gordon, Cat, Matt, Dylan, Doyle, Heather and Max
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